All of the photos taken by the press corps seen in the pictures were published in such a way as to convey a one-time-only, spontaneous snap-shot of an event. Only in viewing the physical context of the photos does one realize just how staged they were.

Photo journalism was one of the crowning achievements of newspaper and magazine publishing in the 20th century. The marines raising the flag on on Iwo Jima and the execution of a Vietcong spy by South Vietnamese General Loan are two examples of sharp photographers being in the right place at the right time and having the opportunity to preserve a unique piece of history on film.

But this staged business? There must be better ways to try to win a Pulitzer.

The strength of photojournalism is also its inherent weakness -- capturing a single moment on film, often without historical or temporal context. We know that Gen. Loan executed a Vietcong spy; what we don't know is how many American soldiers, South Vietnamese solders, or civilians died as a result of his work for the Vietcong.

This past weekend, blogger Zombie visited an anti-war rally in San Francisco and, to his surprise, ended up photographing parts of the demonstration that were also photographed by The San Francisco Chronicle. The Chronicle published a tightly-cropped photo of a girl wearing a bandanna that read "People of Color Say No To War". But Zombie photographed the entire scene, which was, well ... just go and read his post.

And the next time you see a photo of a controversial event in the newspaper, remember to ask yourself if you are seeing the whole story.